Good News for Hard-Luck Ex-Eagle

Les Bowen, Daily News Staff Writer

Posted:
Thursday, July 23, 2009, 1:31 PM

J.R. Reed made it back to the NFL after that horrible nerve injury he suffered behind his knee, when Reed failed to jump a barbed-wire fence in Feb. 2005, a few weeks after playing for the Eagles in Super Bowl XXXIX as a rookie returner and safety. But Reed, a solid hitter with tremendous heart, never quite got back all his quickness and lateral movement, using a special brace to help him lift his foot.

Reed eventually played 6 games for the Rams in 2006, 15 for the Eagles in 2007 and five more with the Birds last season, before they cut him. Now he has joined the coaching staff at South Florida, where he played. In this Tampa Bay.com blog post about his new job, it seems Reed is free to go back to the NFL if anyone becomes interested.